Talanoa Volume 4

Volume 4 Newsletter of International School Suva

27 June, 2017

Principal’s Report Dear Parents and Guardians,

Inside this Issue

The end of the Semester has arrived as suddenly as the end of my term as Interim Principal of International School Suva. What an  eventful but rewarding time it has been.

Despite some of the challenges of the first Semester we are entering Semester 2 settled in a number of areas.

 Welcome To Wonderland

Staffing: With the latest hiring of an experienced PYP trained teacher to look after the Year 4 students while Mrs Saberi is away on maternity leave we have a complete and well experienced compliment of staffing throughout all schools. (I will be emailing the Year  4 parents the details of their new teacher). This includes the arrival of our very experienced Head of Primary – Rebecca Clentworth and our vastly experienced Principal – Steve Cathers.  Steve and Rebecca will be arriving in the next fortnight and we will have some time together working on the transition.

Principal’s Report

Early Childhood

4M’s Timeline

 Middle School

Construction: As I gaze out of the Principals office I see the earthmovers and construction crew busy at work shaping the new play area for the primary students and continuing to create modern teaching spaces that will help the school fulfill its mission statement  of being a Premier International School. The think tank is complete and new play equipment is on its way from Australia. Work will also begin on the new AstroTurf play area these holidays.

Harmony Week Assembly

 Year 8 Article

This morning I met with Don Iggulden and his crew to finalize arrangements for the removal of the final few soffits from school this week. They will then produce the final report that will provide a history to the asbestos issues faced by the school as well as a clean bill  of health in this regard. It will be good to leave the school knowing this is complete.

Staff-Training:  One of the constants in International education is that it is constantly changing. In order to remain at the forefront of these changes the professional development of staff is one of the schools highest priorities. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the US embassy for their significant support into funding the PD opportunities. This allows staff to attend both curricula and leadership opportunities  worldwide. Some workshops that we have participated in this year include:

ISS Library

Year 12 Camp

Science Activity

 French Excursion

ACT Moderation workshops – Australia (5 staff) TESM (Teaching English as a second language in the mainstream) Workshops – Melbourne – (1 teacher) Further Postgraduate studies at USP (Semester 1) – 6 staff Further Postgraduate studies at USP and FNU (Semester 2) – 4 staff IBO – PYP Online workshops – 7 staff Continued …..

 Term Dates 2018

Early Childhood

They call them, “Mellow Yellow.”

The Vonu’s celebrating Harmony Week.

The secret is out, Mr. Hatch

Vinaka Vakalevu Ms @ for enhancing our Fine and Large Motor Skills.

Library We have reached the end of another great term. Here are a few highlights of what's been happening in your library this term. The library team wishes all our students, teachers and parents a wonderful and restful break.

Ms Salu & the library team.

E-mail: library@international.school.fj Library Webpage: http://issfijilibrary.weebly.com

Library Holiday Opening Hours Monday to Friday 9.00 am - 2.00 pm Normal services will be available.

Harmony Week was a success with our students taking part in scavenger hunts, learning about different countries and cultures. Students got to know their teachers better in the activity below. Our younger students painted little “mini them” to include in the “We belong” poster seen below. Thank you to all teachers who took part in the harmony week activities.

Primary students in a peaceful “star jam” weaving frenzy in the library this week in support of ending violence of any kind in the world. Our stars will hang along with other stars weaved from around the world at the City Hall in Brisbane as part of Festival 2018 Commonwealth Games.

More info here: http://www.onemillionstars.net

Year 6 took part in a book tasting event in the library during their DEAR time this week. The library was set up like a restaurant with different genres offered as the main course on each table.

The students were engaged as they sampled the books on their table. At the end of the program, students checked out 2 books they liked.

Visit from Columbia University Researchers ISS welcomed Dr. Joshua Drew of The Drew Lab at Columbia University. He and his team of graduate students are in country for one month conducting marine related research. They addressed our high school students, engaged them in active learning and fielded questions ranging from marine science through to college admissions. They also brought us hermit crabs as part of their research into the impacts of marine pollution! ISS has welcomed The Drew Lab before and looking forward we hope to build a relationship that engages our students in assisting some of their pacific-based research.

Animal Anatomy and Physiology Our Year 9 and 10 Biology students had the opportunity to work hands-on with specimens this term. Students came prepared to work in pairs on the mammalian heart dissection but to their surprise we were also able to acquire a very fresh mammalian respiratory tract. The specimen also contained components from the digestive and cardiovascular systems allowing the students to tie their knowledge together with a clear and systematic approach.

The students were truly amazing inquirers and skilled technicians in working with the specimens. I suspect we may have some aspiring medical professionals emerging from these activities. We are looking forward to working with eyes next semester!

Colo-i-Suva Biodiversity Research Our Year 11 Biology and Environmental Science students conducted research in the Colo-i-Suva National Park. They investigated plant biodiversity and the impacts of natural and anthropogenic disturbances. Students design and conduct their own research and then apply statistical analysis to their data. The yearly data gathering from ISS students may contribute to baseline data in the future. The fieldwork skills acquired and exercised align with university-level techniques for valid data gathering. Great work students!

Indicators and Oxidizers It has been bright lights and bright colours in the Chemistry lab!

Usually it is our students shining the brightest but they had some competition this term as they investigated the combustion of magnesium! The chemicals also showed their true colours in the indicator experiments conducted by our senior students. Truly science must be more about making and doing than simply memorizing and recalling! Our students do it best!

Shocking Show-offs!

During a visit from ‘teachers-in-training’ from Bowling Green University, our Physics students were able to show off their electrical engineering skills. What they actually demonstrated was excellent organizational and collaborative skills while working in a safe and effective manner‌Go ISS! The trainees should hope to someday have students as good as ours!

French class excursion on the Tara schooner

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL SUVA

TERM DATES 2018 Term 1 (10 weeks) Tuesday16th January 2018 Thursday 18th January 2018 Tuesday 23rd January 2018 Thursday 29th March 2018 Friday 30th March 2018

New teachers start All teachers start Students start Term ends Good Friday

Term 2 (10 weeks) Teachers and Y11 and Y12 ACT students start All Students start.

Term ends National Sports day

Monday 16th April 2018 Tuesday 17th April 2018 Friday 22nd June 2018 Friday 29 June 2018

Term 3 (10 weeks) Teachers start Teachers, Y11 and Y12 ACT students start All Students start Constitution Day – Public Holiday Term ends

Monday 16th July 2018 Tuesday 17th July 2018 Wednesday 18th July 2018 Friday 7 September 2018 Friday 21st September 2018

Term 4 (9 weeks) Teachers start Students start Fiji Day – Public Holiday Diwali Prophet Muhammad’s birthday Term ends for students Term ends for Teachers

Monday 8th October 2018 Tuesday 9th October 2018 Wednesday 10thOctober 2018 Wed 7 November 2018 Monday 19 November 2018 Thursday 6th December 2018 Friday 7th December 2018